


Journal of a Lominsan Scholar

by Ilphros



Category: Final Fantasy XIV
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-02-28
Updated: 2019-04-16
Packaged: 2019-11-07 00:49:46
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 11
Words: 8,607
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17950421
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Ilphros/pseuds/Ilphros
Summary: Reactions to the lore and plot of Eorzea, as written from the perspective of a Warrior of Light.Probably cancelled until further notice.





	1. The Secret History of Ishgard

**Author's Note:**

> This is the first fanfic I have bothered to post! Criticism is fine, compliments are appreciated! And if you have questions, including events or topics you want me to write a chapter about, feel free to ask.
> 
> I don't mind spoilers - the journey is more important to me - so I encourage you to ask about things even if you are not sure I have actually encountered them yet.

The journal of Khuja’to Relanah, Scholar of Limsa

                Never before has my understanding of the truth gone through such rapid changes so often in such a short time.  Even now, I suspect that there is another piece missing from my understanding – I have not yet heard the perspective on Ishgard’s secret histories which can be offered by the Archbishop of the Holy See. Regrettably, my journal of my most recent time in Ishgard has been knocked into a raging storm by a great wyrm, and so is quite thoroughly lost. I will have to replace those notes as best as I can.

                I think a few months ago I would have wished at least a dozen venomous curses upon Nidhogg for that particular affront, but after my recent experiences I just hope that Nidhogg has an afterlife which causes no problems for the world. To be frank, after seeing a millennia-long curse of suffering and vengeance begin and, I hope, end… I have found that whatever desire I might have to see even the most terribly deserving persons suffer is dispelled for now. This is true even of Lord Lolorito, although I do still think that Ul’dah might benefit from that particular capitalist receiving a good smack to the face.

                I write this as we await news of Ser Aymeric’s attempt to convince the Holy See to publish as much of the truth as any of us know. We (myself, Alphinaud, Estinien, Ser Aymeric’s knight Lucia, and a few others) suspect that he may be regrettably waylaid, for the news is likely to offend several persons who have grown accustomed to power. Nevertheless, for now I shall imagine that he is putting his soft-spoken yet ultimately unyielding diplomatic talent to successful use. And if he is not successful, that is what exasperated rescues are for. They used to be daring, but I must use Ser Aymeric’s own words with regards to how easily accusations of heresy are tossed about by Ishgard – “‘tis like bad comedy” for even actually slaying dragons appears to make no difference once even a tiny drop of politics enters the scene. Even Ul’dah has stronger protections against false accusation and misuse of political power!

 

                To return to the topic of Ishgard’s history, I have had two relevant Echoes of my own on the topic of the birth of the nation Ishgard, and a report I consider trustworthy of a third Echo from the Lady Ysayle, also known as Lady Iceheart. I shall summarize these first, in chronological order:

                Some two or three centuries before the founding of Ishgard, a woman by the name of Shiva saw the war between Elezen entering the lands of Coerthas and the dragons who lived there, and sought out some way to end the conflict. She met the dragon Hraesvelgr and spoke with him. In time, a mutual desire for respite from war and appreciation of each other’s minds and hearts led to them joining in a close relationship. I am unsure of the precise details, but it certainly ended with the Lady Shiva convincing Hraesvelgr to consume her body and preserve her soul within himself, as her lifespan was so much shorter than his and she wished not to leave him bereaved. In the course of the relationship and joining, the two did broker a peace between the Elezen who would become Ishgard and the dragons, which lasted some two hundred years. This Echo was viewed by Lady Ysayle, and along with the generally polite and tolerant behavior of Hraesvelgr’s brood it gave her a somewhat rosier view of Hraesvelgr’s present compassion than seems to have been warranted by the full context.

                The end of this time of peace came because the founding knights and royalty of Ishgard slew a dragon and consumed its power. The drake Nidhogg was held to have killed the king in revenge, but the prince successfully removed both eyes from Nidhogg in returning vengeance. Even the knights and prince themselves considered the slaying and consumption of their draconic ally (assuming Ratatoskr, see next Echo) a grave betrayal, to the point that the prince and all save four of the knights departed their offices and titles in favor of trades or wandering.

                Nidhogg fell a great distance, blinded by the loss of both eyes, and met with Hraesvelgr. It is from this conversation that we can be reasonably certain that Nidhogg believed that his sister Ratatoskr was the dragon slain and consumed by the Elezen knights and prince. Nidhogg demanded an eye of Hraesvelgr – demanded half his vitality and power, essentially - so that the darker drake might inflict suffering upon Ishgard. Hraesvelgr agreed to this, knowing and acknowledging that it would mean war and suffering.

 

                At this point, by these Echoes and my conversations with the rather cruelly dismissive but apparently honest dragon Hraesvelgr, I believe I may know more of Ishgard’s secret history than its public history (excepting a few current events,) which is slightly embarrassing.

 

                According to the dragon Hraesvelgr, he also wishes essentially the same suffering and death upon Ishgard as Nidhogg did, but the soul of Shiva offers peace or perhaps restrains him in some way. I wish her spirit the best of luck, because slaying Nidhogg who carried just one of Hraesvelgr’s eyes was only reasonable because of the aid of the Azure Dragoon Estinien and his use of one of Nidhogg’s own eyes to hamper the dragon. Fighting a dragon with two eyes would probably be more difficult, and we do not have an eye to use against him (unless an eye from a different dragon suffices, in which case we still have one of Nidhogg’s.)

                Thankfully, my experiences with the dragons of Hraesvelgr’s brood have been largely positive. Some of them scorn men as weak, but a reasonable number of both elders and wyrmlings have respect for at least one (often both) of the power of human warriors and the worth of human life. It is likely that Hraesvelgr would require somewhat more dedicated effort to turn his brood into a mindless horde as Nidhogg did, since their wills would not be so closely aligned. Probably.

 

                As regards the great wyrms I have met – Hraesvelgr and Nidhogg – I rather hate them both. As far as they have said and acted, they deliberately planned and visited a millennium of suffering, not with the intent of achieving any other aim than to make those related to the original betrayers by blood or culture suffer. In case you are not aware, this includes corrupting Inquisitors to inflame zealotry and attempt to turn Ishgard’s power against its own innocents, and the relatives of those innocents against Ishgard through their false use of the flag and faith. I have still not forgiven them that; it offends me deeply.  I consider it only worse that Lady Ysayle’s desires for peace, sometimes-misguided as her methods might be, are in fact in opposition to the plans of those great wyrms, and the false inquisitor’s desire to spread hatred and suffering among the innocent was quite in alignment with their plans.

                On a more positive note, Lady Ysayle appears to have overcome her crisis of faith, and has turned her influence with the heretical groups towards the ends of peace and reconciliation. I would worry for her, but Estinien appears satisfied with the death of Nidhogg and thus the end of the draconic threat to Ishgard, and so is also starting to turn his influence to the same goals, albeit in a more aloof fashion. With Estinien influencing the Dragoons, Haurchefant influencing House Fortemps, and Ser Aymeric attempting to influence the Holy See, this could finally begin to heal - or at least come close enough to doing so that the remaining obstacles can be defeated more directly.

               I do not think I will mention to either Ysayle or Estinien that I never expected such teamwork from them. Perhaps I'll mention it to Alphinaud later.


	2. The Freeing of Ser Aymeric, and Loss

The journal of Khuja’to Relanah, Scholar of Limsa

                As we all feared, the Archbishop has indeed turned out to be more convinced of his own cause and more importantly, his own power, than of any of the virtues which could justify it. To be a bit cynical, I think most of us expected it as well – for a man who claimed to plan a refusal of the Ascians, he was quite unwilling to share any of the supposed information he was getting with myself – more importantly, unwilling to share with Ser Aymeric or Estinien, Ishgardians of high office themselves.

We had need of rebellion, and the rebels of Ishgard answered. Not the so-called heretics (I really must think of a different name for them now…) but rather a woman called the Mongrel. Lady Iceheart has disappeared for now – I am not surprised that without the pressure of warring, her people would retreat entirely. I wish them health and luck in the lands of Dravania, that being my assumption of their choice of retreat; it was most certainly warmer there.

As to the Mongrel, she appears to be something of a champion and figurehead for the people of the Brume – well armed, well respected within the district, and well connected outside it. She aided us quite well with little expectation of true gain, though I found her personally rather reckless, too-willing to fire towards a crowd in order to better assault a foe… By this I mean that one of the Archbishop’s personal knights came to declare us all heretics ( **again** ) and kill us all without even a pretense of trial this time. We fought him, but it was rather sudden and disorganized, especially as he had an unexpected degree of power – gained by summoning a Primal into himself, as it turns out.

As to the Primal-summoning knights in general: Within the course of assaulting the Vault of Ishgard, myself and a few others struck down several of the Archbishop’s personal ‘holy’ knights, who appear to have undergone a process essentially the same as that which Lady Iceheart used to become her vision of Shiva. They were more personally skilled in combat, but it appears that their Primal archetypes are less formed and less potent. I wonder whether it is because they have split a single legend – the holy powers of the Knights Twelve – across many people? Or perhaps it is because while the faith of the people is genuine, the knights themselves knew already that the legend itself is a lie? ~~I am not sure that I will find the answers from them, as my curiosity is not worth delaying revenge~~

~~I~~

~~The knights are foul creatures~~

The knights killed Haurchefant – he brought his shield to my defense, and it was enough to save me but not to save himself. The wound he incurred was filled with zealous energy, and I could not heal him. Alphinaud could not heal him. I am not sure anyone could have. Zephinien, I believe, was the name of the knight whose hand threw the javelin of aether, but I hold the Archbishop accountable foremost. Life for death. I know that Haurchefant asked me to smile, but… it will take some time.

I believe, underneath this, that there is good in the world and good in Ishgard. But right now, I want vengeance for one of my truest friends.

Left alone, the Archbishop will kill again and drain the land for power, so there is justice also in slaying him. Currently, I write this aboard the _Enterprise_ – I hope we catch up quickly…

 

Postscript

                 No notes on secret histories; even an Echo of Ser Aymeric taught me nothing save that the Archbishop has a devil's tongue for twisted rhetoric. Would that he had half the virtue he professes. His talk of sin... his hands are stained and he stains them further every day he is not stopped.


	3. The Slaying of Bismark and the Key to Azys Lla

The journal of Khuja’to Relanah, Scholar of Limsa

                Another Primal slain. The White Whale of the Vundu people, island-eater of the Sea of Clouds, named for the figure Bismark. Or is the Bismark that the Vundu summoned the Bismark of their legends, unlike the lonely, gentle creator-Bismark of the Zundu? I am unsure – I suspect that they are the same, for the Bismark I fought was ill-suited to combat. Massive, mighty, a creature of an environment not native for myself and the Circle… But more like a peaceful creature driven to desperate combat than a wily predator or wrathful god. And that Ascian…

                To return to a more chronological order, our pursuit of the damned Archbishop led the Enterprise to the Sea of Clouds. There, it turns out that the Garleans are somehow a step ahead of us, and were already in pursuit of the Archbishop. Were it not for their threatening an innocent, unarmed owl-person, I would have wished them luck with that. There is some part to me which would like to bring Ruin to the Archbishop myself… but the greater part can accept his death whatever direction it comes. Saving this member of the Vandu tribe of Vanu Vanu turned out to be quite helpful, though, in learning of Bismark – and of Azys Lla, somewhat. The Archbishop seems to be seeking Azys Lla for power, surprising none, and it is a place locked by a key.

                Some efforts with the Vanu Vanu to earn a modicum of aid and to learn of Bismark’s legends and present-day behaviors paid fruit. We learned that Bismark had consumed the ‘key’ to Azys Lla, that Bismark consumed entire islands of the Sea of Clouds (likely for their crystals of wind and water,) and gained enough aid to find an island to serve as bait for the whale. With Ishgardian supplies of dragon-restraining chains, it became possible for myself, Cid, and the Circle to fight and slay Bismark, freeing its aether and the key.

                At this point I believe that I re-entered contact with Hydaelyn… Bismark’s released aether seems to have rejuvenated the Crystal of Wind. Unfortunately, as I write this in Ok’Zundu I am not in possession of the key to Azys Lla and a complete triumph for Light and Virtue. The Archbishop and his Ascian partner proved able to overcome me, with surprise, as I and the Circle were leaving… they took the key, but foolishly used it right in front of me. Cid says that Wedge is working out the location of Azys Lla right now. Even without the key, it seems we both know where to go after all.

                I think that the Ascians are barred or prevented from slaying me directly, if I have the Blessing of Light, however weakly. The Ultima Weapon, yes – but direct combat themselves, no. They seem able to recognize the status of the blessing upon even brief observation. If I were to renew the power of the remaining two Crystals, ~~would they once again be limited until only Lahabrea could walk the earth?~~

                I recall now that I met Ascians while I possessed the Blessing of Light, who were observing me for Lahabrea and seemed to be of the weaker, black-masked variety – so it cannot simply be that only Lahabrea, implied to have a special power to act when other Ascians cannot, is the only one able to enter the world when the Blessing is complete…

 

Aside: The Vanu Vanu

                The Vanu Vanu are like any other so-called Beast Tribe… that is to say, they have cultures and disagreements, and are not truly one tribe any more than the Hyur of Ala Mhigo are identical to the Hyur of Gridania. I am glad to have met the Zundu… they seem to have an iron, but fundamentally peace-seeking will, and were kind enough to avoid those topics which still pain me. Their mastery of language is strange – even the Echo leaves them sounding sometimes strange to me. Are they truly so different from us? Surely not – more alike than the Ascians, at least, or creatures of the void. Why then is their speech broken in the Echo?* Goblins, it occurs to me, have a similar case...

                Regardless of the cause, the Zundu I met with were quite interesting. They were free – freer than any other Beast Tribe I have met – with asking my aid, yet also quite frank that they often did not expect it, and bore no ill-will on the occasions I refused. They seem to feel strongly, but with great control – even when their people are in danger, they immediately set out to plan for a successful escape, avoiding recklessness. Perhaps related to the fact that they live in the Sea of Clouds, where a fall could be much more dangerous? They have implied that they can fly (and certainly seem to get from island to island without trouble,) but I never saw this myself, which implies that it may be quite limited, especially since they still build bridges among the islands they use often in their territory.

 

                *I have a theory! The Vanu Vanu dance quite often, and their speech seems somewhat rhythmic, or at least careful – perhaps in their own tongue, they speak in lyrical fashion, and the Echo’s translation cannot merge both pattern and meaning in the syllables of my own tongue – never have I had trouble understanding one of the Vanu Vanu. Rather, it is merely that their grammar has seemed stilted or broken. I am perhaps receiving a translation of clear meaning, but one where grammar is subordinate to a rhythm that cannot be translated without harming the meaning. This theory does not account, yet, for goblins - assuming it is even correct.


	4. An Encounter With the Garlean Emperor

The journal of Khuja’to Relanah, Scholar of Limsa

                The Empire, with their ever-impeccable timing, managed to show up just in time to be an enemy rather than an ally. This is the second time they have arrived just in time to not help with the defeat of a Primal, then expounded with utmost arrogance as to why they, and they alone, have ever had two brain cells bump together and have an Idea about how to Save The World. I do feel a greater sense of urgency regarding Azys Lla – the new Emperor himself, whose power is but newly-consolidated, does not come to observe efforts of but minor import.

                As I have had the advantage of meeting the new Garlean Emperor face-to-face, some musings on my first impressions on him seem in order. He has the same absolutely brutal arrogance as Gaius did, but I notice that unlike Gaius he seems potentially open to changing his plans. His charisma is sufficient that I cannot say whether he truly believes the Imperial dogma that the Empire is the only true power of worth in the world today, responsible for the whole world, but he at least speaks the words. More than I can say for most Imperial agents of note.

                If I flatter him on any point – given half an excuse to return to pursuing Azys Lla, he did so rather than waste time and effort to ensure the elimination of myself, Alphinaud, and Cid, so he is at least a reasonable person – reasonably well-intentioned or reasonably grasping remains to be seen. If I criticize him on any point – he is a dictator. Let it not be said that I left it at the blindingly obvious, though, so I expand. There is no such thing as a benevolent dictator. Were Emperor Zaris to ever actually achieve his goals, he would find a miserable empire, built on bones, rotting and crumbling wherever new corpses cannot be used to stitch it together by making the problems of today into the greater problems of tomorrow.

                But as a person, he seems halfway respectable, a grand improvement. I could perhaps work with him if our interests align obviously enough for his ponderous (but admittedly mighty) hulk of an empire to realize it in time to actually help.

                It is surprising how good an impression – well, by comparison to my expectations – I came away with, given that our meeting involved him planning to massacre the entire Zundu tribe I’ve come to know and appreciate. It does help that given half an excuse, he left rather than actually kill anyone. On that subject, questioning them about the aftermath drove in how distant from mankind’s psychology the Vanu Vanu are in some ways – faced with warriors they could not overcome, apparently not a single one of them engaged in panic nor hopeless opposition. They seem remarkably calm in the aftermath as well - neither forgetting it, nor letting it rule them.

                The Empire’s desire for ‘order’ and ‘unity’ sometimes sounds seductive, but it is times like this that I understand why it is ultimately a foul and pointless goal. The Vanu Vanu are so very like us, yet so different alos, and their differences are as fascinating and admirable to us as ours are to them. I wish that politics and geography made it easier for them to ally with the nations of Eorzea below, for it would bring benefit to us both. Say not ‘unity’ but rather ‘harmony’; many parts, greater and more beautiful for being different rather than made one. We could never need complete order any more than we could need complete disorder.

                I seem to have wandered away from my intended topic, and Alphinaud is starting to stare at the sky in that particular way that seems to mean, “I wish I felt confident and aggressive enough to tell you off for delaying us, oh Warrior of Light.” I should remind him that I trust his judgement... Well, on to Azys Lla – racing, now, the Empire and those unworthy Knights both.

 

Postscript:

                For my own memory: the Emperor did have a massive airship fire at us, but it was really more between us and his group. I don’t believe he even wanted to kill us, let alone meant to. I think my estimation of threats is finally becoming truly skewed by all the god-slaying, though, it’s not been a quarter-day and I nearly forgot about it just because it was so obviously half-hearted. (Alphinaud, if you are reading this and choose to laugh about it, I am sure your beloved coat would fit your dear sister just as well and make a fine gift.)


	5. An Analysis of Azys Lla From Outside

The journal of Khuja’to Relanah, Scholar of Limsa

An analysis of Azys Lla and the barrier surrounding it, from the exterior:

                We have encountered Azys Lla, but a powerful barrier has rebuffed us. I fear that the Archbishop and his Ascian ally will have already made it past with the key they stole. However, it does appear that all is not lost – the Allagan site has clearly been awakened, but appears to still be sessile. Whatever they seek to do with it – they have not succeeded yet, and it will likely take some time for them to navigate the defenses and controls… I well recall the behaviors of the Crystal Tower and the fragments of Dalamud. With the power they have summoned up, though, I cannot say that they will fail…

                The barrier itself is quite interesting – in contrast to past Allagan defenses, it seems to be not directly lethal. The Enterprise suffered damage in encountering it, but that damage seems to be more from the impact of a solid body, rather than being like to the destructive response of similar Allagan sites. The barrier seems to be similar to that of the Crystal Tower, in being made of singly-aspected aether in the form of a geometric field, but is projected at a distance and, I cannot emphasize enough, lacks that annihilating response. It is also not of a single part, and I wonder if that is the cause? Being projected at a much greater distance, perhaps the available power for channeling is lesser – and doubly lesser, as this barrier seems to be made up of numerous small hexagons reinforcing a gestalt, rather than being a truly continuous surface. Sadly, while we espied a gap in the hexagons, there is a gestalt surface formed between – a weakness, rather than a hole.

                Within the barrier lie several islands – I should not be so surprised, and yet I somehow suspected something more akin to an airship, or something wholly artificial like Dalamud. This indicates a rather fascinating thing – that the Sea of Clouds has been around in its current form since at least the Third Astral Era… if not longer, for my intuition keeps telling me that this place is some sort of graveyard. What machinery and architecture we saw of Azys Lla brought to mind some primordial graveyard, torn from the earth and placed in the sky… yet, I have seen also islands and spires amongst the larger Sea of Clouds whose shape suggests the form of ancient, dead dragons. Sadly, I’ve not the time to ask Vidofnir of such things right now.

                Mercifully, the machinery of Azys Lla, while not dark and lifeless, is clearly sessile. Whatever the aim of Archbishop Thordan and his knights, they have not yet made any visible progress towards their goals. That gives us time to gather personnel and resources to breach the barrier that their stolen key has already taken them pass. Thank the Light that their few numbers, however powerful, will make entrenching themselves difficult; tactically speaking, they should gain little advantage from getting here first.

 

Postscript: With regards to breaking the barrier, an aetherial converter or reflector would suffice - but we have not the power to find and deploy sufficient crystals of appropriate alignment, nor the time to prepare a reflector (assuming it would even work against a barrier so different in function.) Cid says that my suggestion of towing another crystal-rich island toward the barrier is also not workable. He did have to do some calculations before declaring it unworkable with the uncorrupted Wind or Water alignments present in the Sea of Clouds, however. Nor will ramming any island into the barrier directly help; we could not achieve sufficient velocity of so much mass. Progress! I am beginning to gain a vague understanding of what technological miracles Cid, Biggs, and Wedge can and cannot manage. I suppose it is reasonable that the Allagans prepared a barrier proof against all attacks which could be managed from the Sea of Clouds itself. Seeking alternate solutions is not easy, nor simple, but at least it is a clear task to focus on.


	6. The Restoration of Y'shtola

The journal of Khuja’to Relanah, Scholar of Limsa

                As I write this, the Elementals of Gridania are attempting to gather together the dispersed being of Y’shtola. I have had my doubts about them in the past, but I wish them what luck I can offer. I am but glad that my past work with Y’mhitra means I knew how to track her down swiftly – she never mentioned that she had a sister, nor that said sister was Y’shtola! I can be only grateful that the two are sisters (of one different parent, but we hope still close enough in blood and feeling,) for our plan relies upon those bonds.

                Tataru is at last hearing news, now, that can lead us to our missing allies, and I feel somewhat conflicted. This time, an attempt at finding – restoring, truthfully – our lost ally… no, our lost friend, even if she seems sometimes allergic to the word. Restoring Y’shtola is not guaranteed to work, but making at least the attempt aids us in helping to oppose the Archbishop and rescue Ishgard. It also, though, drives into my face… I have not had to choose between the goals – the Scions and Ishgard, not truly. And I am not entirely certain which I would choose. I shall think more upon it… though, I suppose… Minfilia, Y’shtola, Papalymo, and given time Alphinaud – I believe they would all tell me that rescuing them can likely wait longer than rescuing Ishgard, with an Allagan facility of such wholeness as Azys Lla coming into play.

 

                The process itself of restoring Y’shtola from the forbidden spell by which she dispersed herself is taking some time, but… I can see faint glimmers, when I look not directly at the sacred place where this attempt is taking place. Kan-E-Senna and her partners are clearly deep in focus, with Y’mhitra nearby. Whatever communion is taking place here, even the Echo and my training in the precise channeling of aether affords me little comprehension of it. I wonder, with the emphasis Kan-E-Senna placed upon bonds and feelings, rather than words or patterns, whether my training in the _precise_ channeling of aether might have focused my senses away from the perspectives which the Elementals dwell in.

                The glimmering grows stronger as I write; I can now see small stars bursting into being and then fading – but some staying. Are these pieces of Y’shtola, or extensions of the Elementals into the visible?

 

                **It worked!**

 

Postscript: We seem to have recovered Y’shtola truly, or at least enough of her to count her truly returned to us. I do not know for certain how we would tell, if some subtle piece of Y’shtola, unknown even to us, were left un-found… But speaking with Tataru (who was quite helpful with working through my worries here,) I think that once the Elementals recovered ‘Y’shtola’, she would herself serve as a bond to any remaining pieces. Perhaps this is why, in the final moments of the process, Kan-E-Senna and her partners suddenly channeled much more power, and the gathering of lights accelerated? Some threshold was passed, between 'parts of Y’shtola’, and ‘the person Y’shtola’, and from there all other parts were more easily gathered to us…

                I am so grateful to have my friend back. And… Y’shtola perhaps especially, of all the Archons. I sometimes feel as if the magic I have learned has been so focused upon combat – destruction, preservation – that I… lack, now, in subtler magics. I know I do not truly 'lack' them, but I feel barely greater in that regard than I was that day when I came to Limsa, a scant few years back… To have Y’shtola at our side again soothes that worry.

                There is so much to tell her; I must see which of my journals from Ishgard I still possess (I’ll not curse him, but I’ve not forgiven Nidhogg for destroying one!)


	7. Academic Notes: Different Types of Summoning

The journal of Khuja’to Relanah, Scholar of Limsa

Arcanism, Allagan Summoning, and Nymian Scholarship: Similarities and Differences in the Summoning of Beings

                As the inheritor of two unusually advanced schools of aetherial endeavor, it is inevitable that I have given some thought to how they compare – and how they do not. The fact that both of them are compatible with the precise and mathematical techniques of Arcanism further emphasizes what aspects are truly shared, which only appear shared, and which are quite divergent. I freely admit that I am a Scholar (both Nymian and generally) first and an Allagan Summoner second, and that my understanding of Allagan Summoning is, while useful, slightly inferior to what it could be when it comes to theory.

                To begin with, both Scholarship and Summoning rely upon bonds by which an external being is made a magical partner – except that in truth, this is the reverse of how it ought to be seen. The Egis which I summon and Lily, the Fairy whom I summon, are in part their own being – but in no way have I drawn them into myself. Instead, I empower and anchor an existence that would otherwise not ‘touch’ this world into full physicaity. In the very basics, summoning a Carbuncle by focusing my aether through a gem, summoning an Egi by focusing my aether through the remnants of a Primal’s self, and summoning Lily (my partner Fairy) by focusing my aether through her self are all founded upon the same principle – that I can offer and refract my own aether and self through something other in order to create a new physical shell.

                Any properly prepared gem can be used to create a physical shell of a Carbuncle, which is filled by primarily my own attention – not wholly a puppet, but partly a puppet. I can be said to ‘control’ my Carbuncle, though the process is as much command. The attention which I place into Carbuncle is in some ways gone to me for as long as I can force it to remain upon Carbuncle - it forms a partitioned part of my mind, independent in behavior but not truly independent in decisions. I command Carbuncle because I have the conscious portion of my mind, and I control Carbuncle because everything that makes up Carbuncle is still a part of me, distant and veiled but not actually separated. A Carbuncle cannot rebel, precisely, but it is possible for one to behave in an unexpected way, for the same reason that someone can discover that they did not fully understand their own desires.

                An Egi is different; to channel one’s aether through the shreds of a destroyed Primal is a much more complicated process (akin to the difference between working with a circle, and working with a more unusual set of curves and lines.) The result requires none of my attention, nor technically requires more than the barest scrap of my will. Indeed, the first summoning of an Egi permits only enough of my will to enter it that it deigns to manifest – and then, modeled upon a Primal as it is, it generally attacks me. Upon earning the respect and submission of the Egi (generally by attacking it more effectively in return,) it then permits more of my will to enter it, and becomes a partner. Unlike a Carbuncle, I neither can control an Egi directly, nor do I need to. The bond is one of determination and decision: What I decide, my Egi knows, and chooses to carry out, for it has consented to be filled with my own will. In theory, an Egi could consider rebellion – but unlike a human or a full Primal, it lacks the independent will to decide upon such a course. It can, however, choose to fulfill my will in unexpected ways, and more often so than a Carbuncle, for its personality is not my own.

                Lily is once again different; I channel my aether into someone who already exists, but is not naturally physical at all times. As I understand her state, Lily can be physical only with difficulty, and could be said to ‘naturally’ be immaterially aetherial.* When I channel my aether into her, I grant her a source of being which is naturally physical, such that we together form a physical body with ease.** Lily has two aspects which she can express through a physical body; these aspects are the Dawn aspect of Eos, a preserver and restorer, and the Dusk aspect of Selene, a purifier and enhancer. Lily answers to the name associated with her aspect as another name for herself – she does not, however, answer to the name of her unexpressed aspect, nor can she manifest an unaspected body. It is possible for her to affect the physical world without a physical body, but only under certain circumstances.*** My bond with Lily is one between two separate people; though we share aether to empower each other such that our whole is greater than the sum of our parts, and possess a mental connection, Lily is her own person in whole. Lily is fully capable of rebellion, but chooses not to out of loyalty in the same manner as a human – usually. Glad am I that she can rebel and once has, for if she had not gone against my uninformed-at-the-time wishes and saved Surito Carito upon our first meeting, we would not have saved the Tonberries – nor learned so much of ancient Nym’s beautiful knowledge.

 

 

*I had thought it was the Echo that allowed me some understanding of how the Elementals restored Y’shtola from being dispersed into the aetherial currents, however cursory my understanding of that process was. But upon re-considering this, I think it may have been my connection with Lily which enabled me to detect as much as I did.

**We have attempted, and it is not possible for us to form additional Fairy bodies, even empty ones, with such ease, though we've made normal Carbuncles together. The process is so difficult and straining as to be pointless for practical purposes at this time. I believe that the cause of this is that both I and Lily are each singular beings, and it is only our union which enables the easy creation of a body for her – neither of us has the capacity to form a wholly independent body which is neither of us, nor maintain one which is no longer us. I do wonder… if I were to use Y’shtola’s forbidden spell of Flow, would I and Lily be able to reconstitute my body as easily as we do Lily’s? And would it be possible for me to leave my Miqo'te body behind and exist as a Fairy temporarily or permanently? I have no way to mitigate the enormous risks of experimenting with these questions, so for now they will remain merely questions. Attempting to become a Fairy is something to consider if I find myself dying slowly rather than quickly - unlikely, given my lifestyle, but possible. I think I would enjoy partnering with a new generation of Nymian Scholars.

***Our experiments – mine, truly, as Lily has participated in such curiosities before – and some instruction with Surito Carito have determined that it is possible for Lily to affect the physical world without a physical body by means of a technique called Dissipation. This, as the name implies, turns her physical body back into aether – the technique relies upon the fact that so long as Lily is allowed to recover between uses, her ‘inhabiting’ a body we have created in partnership jointly attunes its aether to us, such that by reclaiming it we can pool our collective power and control of it while she is not physically manifest. In theory, Lily could sabotage rather than reinforce my spells; we have experimented with such things for the sake of knowledge, but as yet found no practical use for it. In theory, there might be other ways to attune aether to Lily so that she could at least temporarily affect it while not being physical herself, but we have as yet not found any.


	8. Between Recovery and Idyllshire

The journal of Khuja’to Relanah, Scholar of Limsa

                I had prior thought that we recovered Y’shtola in full… but now it is clear that she is not unchanged by the experience – and in ways beyond new memories and learning. I nearly missed that, physically speaking, she is now blind. It scares me, that in my searches I nearly missed such a thing (and can still not explain it, not physically or aetherially.) What else is missing, or - like her vision - invisibly disconnected?

                I fear that I was quite offensive to her, indirectly. No, I know that I was. The specter of Azys Lla still hangs over me, and I had placed so much hope into the return of a lost Scion being something purely good that even the slightest flaw offended me. She is right, though, that it is mostly her business more than mine.

                I still worry, in private… but I can wait to bother her until I see it cause problems, or we are safe enough for such things.

 

                In the meantime, between myself, Y’shtola, and the Ironworks crew we have managed some of the theoretical work on a weapon which could dispel this new (ancient) shield that bars us from Azys Lla. As the shield is not in motion, and is a series of projected plates, it should be most vulnerable to a spear (Cid insists upon ‘ram’ and I was out-voted) of aether. We have been unable to resolve some of the practice of what assembly would allow the creation of such an effect at the required scale. Mercifully, Y’shtola herself knows of a Sharlayan expert who might have particular insight on the appropriate design.

                I’ll not tell her, but my worry is inflamed again… Y’shtola has never once mentioned her teacher to me before. I worry that despite her words, they parted on bad terms. Regardless, we travel deeper into what is now Dravania. It worries me – I have heard only few tales of the lush lands Alphinaud and Y’shtola recall, but I saw how terribly Ravana of the Gnath had drained Dravania… I have too many worries. How will it harm my friends to see their homeland dessicated, are my friends whole and uninjured, are we going to dig up unpleasant partings… I think I should go and cloud-watch with Garuda-Egi. I wonder… is the greater Garuda’s love of conquest born of the same love of appreciation which my smaller companion’s flamboyance shows? Ugh. Even this is tainted by wondering today! Normally I would appreciate it.

                I’m going to go spar with Biggs, then.

 

Postscript: I have set a simple ward that will hopefully bar curious scholars from _my personal journals_. I am aware that at this point I am almost assured to go down in history, but my journals are not historical documents **_yet_**. There is only one Miqo’te scholar permitted in my journal until at least fifty years have passed, and that is myself.


	9. Bypassing Idyllshire

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A short chapter, but I wanted to put something out there.

The journal of Khuja’to Relanah, Scholar of Limsa

                To me, the Dravanian Hinterlands are beautiful. It is as if the greenery of the gentlest places of La Noscea spread across the whole land, and the soaring white stones of the ruins here seem bright, rather than abandoned. Unfortunately, it is not so for my companions – Alphinaud and Y’shtola are both clearly subdued and nostalgic in turns at almost every step.

                It leads me to wonder how I would feel, walking among the ruins of Limsa. I’ve always imagined the result as arising from the Sahagins salting the earth until nothing lives – sea life unable to bear the dry, land life unable to bear the salt. But what of the ruins left behind? I have never really considered that. Skeletons of ships, slowly rotting in shallow water, I suppose… And a resurgence of piracy, each ship a parasite nation apart and isolated. Sharlayan’s ruins have attracted goblin scholars, Illuminati and free, and treasure-hunters for their grand libraries. It is uncomfortable to think of how little Limsa Lominsa has to offer future history, if it falls.

                Ugh. These thoughts have plagued me all day – the regrets of my companions proving contagious in their own way. Dealing with goblins – both unfriendly and free – has been a distraction, at least. The Illuminati are as strangely fanatical as ever, but the goblins of the place they call Idyllshire are friendlier. They have offered to let us stay the night within their walls – protection from the Illuminati faction – but if we are to cross the river on their bridge, they want labor from us. With Azys Lla hovering both literally and figuratively over us, though, I fear we cannot spare the time. I, Y’shtola, and Alphinaud are trading riddles across the campfire while Lily scouts a path we might take without needing to challenge the guards.

                I might like to come make amends, some day, but the three of us are agreed – we’ve not the time.


	10. Mistress Matoya and Preparations for the Great Gubal Library

The journal of Khuja’to Relanah, Scholar of Limsa

                Mistress Matoya is a woman whose kind I have beheld in some distinctly lesser way amongst many a village. She is not stooped with age, precisely; rather, she seems a woman of terrifying sharpness, all barbs and edges. Over this collection of metaphorical blades, age has been draped like a thing apart from her – as obvious physically as it is a deception mentally. Her every feature screams her long age when still, but one need only witness her body language or listen to her words to dispel that.

                Speaking upon her words, it is clear that Y’shtola quite extensively moderates her words among the Scions and even Limsa. I am distinctly impressed; both student and teacher managed to give the impression that the only reason they are not both swearing enough to make a pirate blush is that to do so first would mean losing their personal, verbal war. All throughout, they managed to do so with only rather mild language.

                I do have to wonder, though, if Matoya has some sort of fondness for me. Y’shtola has vaguely implied – but never confirmed – that her teacher may have some small knowledge of future events, so that might explain how she seems to avoid insulting me? She certainly had few, if any kind words, but the neutrality was quite a difference from how she treated Alphinaud or Y’shtola. Even the neutrality I am somewhat uncertain of; she has given us a potential solution to our problems entering Azys Lla, and the price is that I must be given entry to the Great Gubal Library!

                The works sealed in that library… even my friends here both are envious not only of my not having to perform chores for Mistress Matoya, but also of this chance, and they’ve had the opportunity to visit it before. A building holding every work of literary merit – fictional narratives, historical records, academic theories, design notes – that Sharlayan’s colony could gather, all here and organized. I am camped a short ways off, preparing for my first foray – apparently some of the defenses will still be active.

                I can’t pretend the active defenses of such a magnificent place don’t worry me, but apparently most of them can still be shut down… but with Y’shtola’s help, we’ve managed to call in a couple of my acquaintances from the Maelstrom who are suited to urban work. Sadly, I couldn’t reach Alka Zolka in time. He will be quite sad to have missed this chance, especially as he’s much better than I am at spotting texts which might reference Nym. I will be sad to lack his axe, as well - my attempts to thread the summoning of an Egi through Lily are still abject failures, and I worry that three of us will not be enough to watch each others' backs...


	11. Observations on the Great Gubal Library

Observations on the Great Gubal Library

For the Desk of the Admiral

                Having recently had the good fortune to open and explore the Great Gubal Library of the Sharlayans’ Eorzean colony, I feel it is both my pleasure and my duty to explain what I discovered of its contents and defenses. It is my fervent hope that, having read of the likely risks and rewards – and especially the risks of delaying too long - you will decide to devote some appropriate task force to the exploration of the Library and making its contents once again available to the world, beginning with Limsa Lominsa.

                I shall not be shy in saying that the once-safe Library is now a quite dangerous location, to be explored only in force. However, contrary to past descriptions of its defenses, such an expedition is now quite possible by less than the most expert of scoundrels or heroes. Of the active defenses of the Library, none remain. The local goblin factions (Idyllshire and Illuminati) do not in either case patrol the area of the Library’s exterior, and the only remaining Sharlayan with access to the Library is far more interested in her isolation than in keeping intruders from what she considers a public, if dangerous, space.

                With regards to the passive defenses of the library, there are two classes – in the first class, barriers and locks, and in the second class, animated guardians and rogue voidsent. During my expedition through the library, I discovered that only the outermost barrier was in fact still active – while the magical paths and guides of the Library remain active, all defenses have been destroyed over the intervening period by an infestation of voidsent. For this reason, the first class of passive defenses is entirely lacking, meaning that any faction either positive or hostile with access to military force can retrieve knowledge from the Library. Of the second class, it is clear to me that the bound demons and animated objects of the Library have been losing a war of attrition against the invading voidsent, placing the works of the Library in ever-greater danger of being used against us.

                Of the voidsent, there is a double-edged blade from their presence; of the voidsent I saw, all were as fervently interested in the books as my own group, if not more. For this reason, I do not believe that there is a pressing danger of the demons destroying the knowledge within the library. Indeed, most of them preferred to use magical tomes to manifest themselves, and were willing to defend the books when they felt it necessary. However, should they ever finish overcoming the defending objects and mammets of the Library, they would be able to entrench themselves and render any future attempts to recover the works of Sharlayan immensely more difficult. As I have been confirmed an inappropriate judge of danger, I must leave it to the reports from my two Maelstrom scout companions to confirm that the voidsent presence is within the grasp of troops to suppress without undue threat.

                Having now outlined the threats – present, but surmountable – I wish to remind you of the wonders I have seen! In the main hall alone is a chamber that ranges from three stories above the earth to at least ten more beneath it, as far across as a plaza of Limsa, with every wall absolutely covered in tomes. I have no doubt that many of these tomes are ones which we already possess copies of, but they mean that even a shallow expedition would have the opportunity to gain a few gems amidst the greater mass.

                In the more restricted areas, I can confirm that there exist preserved copies of books which were eliminated elsewhere either by loss or by deliberate destruction, including in-depth manuals on Imperial Garlean social strata and culture, a range of books covering the theory and practice of aetherial elemental alignments, and a full spectrum of variations upon an Ishgardian folk tale of how a boy and a dragon befriended or attacked one another. I include this last not as a demonstration of the immediate value of such books, but rather of how thorough the Sharlayan’s archival efforts were, to have not only recorded such folk tales thoroughly but to have preserved them against all efforts of the Ishgardian inquisitors. We can be thus assured that in addition to the samples I personally encountered, there will be yet more tomes such as those which were assumed lost.

                Of the Sharlayan-specific magical information which is available, I can confirm that it is partially compatible with our own practices of arcanima. I have confirmed this from my studies with Alphinaud and of the tomes I was able to retrieve (sadly limited by what I was able to safely carry.) Along with this missive should be packaged a slim volume, the first of several regarding the nature of aetherial transformations from one aspect to another. I am sure that if you have it studied by the Arcanist’s Guild they will agree that recovery of the full set would supplement our practical knowledge with leaps forward in applicable theory.

                While I can no longer be at your disposal alone, this project can benefit the entire Alliance, whether your counterparts in Gridania and Ul’dah can be convinced to assist, or exhorted to agree to the necessary diplomatic ties to make granting access worthwhile even after the work is done.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Khuja'to really likes books. A nice old lady sent him into what might be the greatest library on the continent; of course he wants to share it with everyone.  
> Sadly, in the canon, nobody but adventurers really pays attention to the Library. Possibly because the place is, in fact, full of demons.

**Author's Note:**

> I'm having trouble writing further, and may not return to this work. I won't take it down, of course, but it will likely not get further updates.


End file.
